# Qojin

**Qojin** was a daughter of Chinggis Khan and his principal wife [Börte](https://www.edgepedia.org/borte), and, according to Rashīd al-Dīn's *Jamiʻ al-Tawārīkh*, the oldest of Chinggis Khan's children overall.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> She married Butu, a follower of Chinggis Khan from the Ikires clan.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup>

| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Parentage | Daughter of Chinggis Khan and Börte<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> |
| Birth order | Rashīd al-Dīn records her as the oldest of Chinggis Khan's children overall<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> |
| Marriage | Married Butu, an Ikires follower of Chinggis Khan<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> |
| Main source | Rashīd al-Dīn's *Jamiʻ al-Tawārīkh* (Compendium of Chronicles), translated by W. M. Thackston<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> |

## Family and marriage

Qojin belonged to the group of daughters through whom the Chinggisid (descendant or member of [Genghis Khan](https://www.edgepedia.org/genghis-khan)'s dynasty) house bound allied families to itself by marriage. Her full sisters include Chechiyegen, who married an Oirat prince; Alaqa, who married several Önggüt princes; Al Altan, who married the idu-qut Barchuk of the Uighurs; and Tümelün, who married one of Börte's Qongrat nephews.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> These marriages placed Chinggisid daughters at the head of, or in alliance with, territories and peoples around the empire's core: Uighur territory through Al Altan, Önggüt territory through Alaqa, and Oirat territory through Chechiyegen.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup>

Qojin's own marriage followed a different pattern. Rather than sealing an alliance with a ruling house, she married Butu, a follower of Chinggis Khan from the Ikires, one of the entourage families that had served the khan during his rise.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> Marriages between Chinggisids and members of the khan's entourage formed a recognized category alongside the dynastic alliances with foreign ruling houses.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup>

## Sources

The record of Qojin's place in the family rests chiefly on Rashīd al-Dīn's *Jamiʻ al-Tawārīkh*, the early 14th-century compendium compiled in the [Ilkhanate](https://www.edgepedia.org/ilkhanate). In W. M. Thackston's translation, the passage naming Qojin as the oldest child appears at page 347, and related birth-order statements about her sisters Alaqa and Tümelün appear elsewhere in the work, allowing historians to reconstruct an overall birth order for Chinggis Khan's children.<sup>[1](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)</sup> Rashīd al-Dīn drew his Mongol material on oral information, partly supplied by Ghazan Khan himself and by informants from the various Mongol domains.<sup>[2](https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/historiography-iv/)</sup>

## References

1. [Anne F. Broadbridge, "Marriage, Family and Politics: The Ilkhanid-Oirat Connection," Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 26 (2016)](https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/marriage-family-and-politics-the-ilkhanidoiratconnection/F8BE2F5A363C93861B9E47FFE4328A7E)
2. ["Historiography iv. Mongol Period," Encyclopaedia Iranica](https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/historiography-iv/)

---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › History and archaeology › Historical methods and broad narratives › Medieval history by region and period › Titles I to Y*

*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*

*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*

License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license